REVIEW: ‘High & Low: The Worst X’ Delivers Fast Camp & Faster Violence

Fujio Hanaoka leads the delinquents of Oya High school as the toughest there are. But some of their rivals are looking to take them down. And while each of them may not be a match for Oya’s toughest fighters, together, they may just be able to challenge this top dog in High & Low: The Worst X.

An important thing to note when coming into this movie is that this is one of a series which means that there is already a sizable cast of characters that have a history with each other. And while the movie does flash everyone’s name, the year of school they are in, along with the school their allegiance is with, the names all rapidly became a blur as more and more characters were thrown at me. Luckily, this eclectic cast’s outward looks are all as unique as their personalities, with costuming and make-up that makes each one standout in their own right. So even though characters beyond the lead Fujio (Kazuma Kawamura) were hard to keep track of, the unique character designs ensured that I could keep everything straight even as the onslaught of characters continued throughout the first half of the movie.

Some approaches to building a narrative I thought I’d only ever experience in video games. On that list are bizarre characters that are somehow cobbled together to form a group that feels oddly fitting that are faced with threats that devolve into fighting endless waves of enemies until they finally come face to face with the big bad. Once this enemy is confronted, a series of fights ensue as the opponent magically returns to their feet repeatedly in slightly different situations, with the occasional wave of minions to mix up the moments. This is how so many action games play out, and it is also how High & Low: The Worst X plays out as well.

Perhaps that is why, while I could never call this film “good,” in the traditional sense, though it is fun. Maybe it harkened back to the action games I have spent so much time with, only this time, rather than taking control of the protagonist, I got to sit back and simply enjoy the bizarre antics and over-the-top battles. Whether it is this reason or some other that eludes me, High & Low: The Worst X just manages to work.

That said, its High & Low: The Worst X‘s opening half that is the weakest. As the story sets up the showdown that will take up the entirety of the movie’s second hour, the plot skips from one group to another at what sometimes feels like random. While some of these moments build the plot, much of it just feels disjointed, serving little purpose but to showcase the bizarre antics of its cast, and introduce yet another potential faction to the story. While all these groups do come to play a role of one size or another in the plot, I wish there could’ve been a less rapid-fire way to bring them all in.

By the time this dizzying plot setup is done, and Oya High finds itself under siege by its enemies, I was convinced High & Low: The Worst X would never be able to sell me on the emotional impact it sought to bring as the school is beset by its enemies. And yet, despite myself, I found myself becoming invested in these teens who, in all likelihood, are no better than their assailants as they struggle and fight to survive. Noble sacrifices in the name of friendship dot the chaotic moments of combat, giving viewers moments that provide a surprising amount of emotional grounding for the often ridiculous combat.

While the emotional aspects of the movie landed better than I expected, it wasn’t without its duds. A last-minute exploration of the main antagonist and his right-hand man reveals why the two are so close, though the reasoning is pretty inane. Given the amount of abuse the lead bad guy heaps on his subordinates, it would take a lot more than what is shown there to deal with a personality like his.

When all is said and done, High & Low: The Worst X is a bizarre, fun action flick that revels in its campy energy and even manages to pull more emotion out of its narrative than it feels it has any right to. Despite a sometimes confusingly fast pace in its opening, the film often succeeds at being an enjoyable watch, even if I don’t think I could ever call it good.

High & Low: The Worst X is streaming now on Netflix.